For 44 weeks Prince Harry faced in RMA Sandhurst with unflinching determination the hardships and privations of military life. At the end of this period he admitted:

”Although it was tough, it was worthwhile!”

All of this is not so long ago. His youth races on. The rest of us, follow him, trying to figure out his destiny. Nobody is more fortunate than him! In order to defend this rich and honest personality, Harry has to work hard, and hopefully he will encourage other young people to follow in his footsteps.

He has a completely different quality to him now. Prince Harry has acquired the ability to anticipate events, intuitively. Now he can plug into the deep flow underlying the development of events, and empathize how others around him are feeling. All of this together with his thorough knowledge of military affairs will give him a great advantage in working for the
good of his people, and of the whole world.

His way of thinking has radically changed. His playful childhood and adolescence are now lost in the past as mere memories. Prince Harry has become a man! His intuition, his experience, his sensitivity allow him to identify himself with many elements of the outside world.

Prince Harry combines now so many qualities – mental vigor, a strong character, clear-sightedness, command of language, discipline, enthusiasm and willingness for self-sacrifice, sensuality and austerity combined in the one person. All of this is an expression of a unique, well-defined identity. He’s stated so many times that he can’t spend his life dreaming in the shadow of the century-old trees in Windsor Park. He wasn’t born to remain untouched by the events of this world.

His passage through this world may not be all that serene but he has an important task to accomplish. His destiny is to operate on the World stage and help people everywhere enjoy the values that have always been dear to our hearts. These are values which today are universally accepted.

We will gather the fruits of this work in the decades to come. We, who know him, suspect that his fame will live on from age to age to all eternity! He’s promised himself, that after graduation from Sandhurst Royal Military Academy he’ll always live life with a serious minded and analytical approach to things. In this endeavor he’ll be supported by the strength of his moral upbringing and his great desire to know the world and the love of his fellows.

Harry hopes to be part of the great pulse of humanity fully in contact with his times. This is a big world not confined by family, or by coming from a certain region or a particular country. The world in all its richness must be shared with the entire human species.

New Colours are presented to RMAS (Royal Military Academy Sandhurst). Officer Cadet Wales (Prince Harry of Wales – rightmost of the cadets, visible between the Chief of the Defence Staff and the horse) and his intake of Juniors are inspected by the then Chief of the Defence Staff, General Sir Michael Walker GCB, CMG, CBE, later Baron Walker of Aldringham (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Arriving at Sandhurst Harry felt that all around him a new world was taking shape. When he timidly entered the gate of RMA Sandhurst it seemed to him he was living out a dream to which his principles were opposed. He had to spend here 44 weeks.

He felt that his new status as a junior cadet would bring him new experiences and challenges. Little by little, in the first days of his military career, Harry gets acquainted with the strict hierarchy of the military, military ranks and positions, military language and terminology, the forms of address laid down by regulation. The schedule includes a period of adjustment to the life of a cadet, characterized by many individual duties which are not easy. For some, this period passes quickly, for others, it seems long.

During the five weeks of drills ( named “weeks of the inferno”) Harry learned many things. This was important for him. Training fortifies the spirit and exerts a good influence on any soldier. Training and life in the military develop the mind, cultivate emotions and responses, strengthen the will, mould the character and shape the temperament. Last but not least, they develop respect for values and symbols which Harry up to this point hadn’t fully appreciated.

During the Second Term’s classes, Harry began to get the feeling of what it was to be a cadet and he trained as much as he could in order to cope with it. His interest in military life sharpened his mind and developed his competitive spirit. The quality of an officer is acquired not only as a result of the training in the Shooting Range and in the Exercise Field, but also as a result of his classroom education. Here in the classroom, Harry understood that military life, with its specific demands, requires certain fundamental changes in the attitude and behavior of each cadet.

During the Third Term the educational background obliges him to display integrity, to make quick decisions and be fair. He has to assume responsibility for his actions. He has to demonstrate moral courage in all circumstances and inspire and drive his soldiers to attain their goals. He must respect and defend their honor and dignity and set an example as regards physical strength and endurance. If he can combine all of this, he can consider himself competent and he deserves respect. Otherwise, he will be a pale shadow of a genuine commander. He will fail at the first test whether that be in the garrison, or on the battlefield.

The second part of the book tells about the Expedition to Cyprus which is going to be such an adventure! This test is going to discover whether all of them have completed the metamorphosis that turns them into professional soldier.

Being a captain now, Prince Harry often remembers his master from Sandhurst Academy: “I often remember Major D., our company commander. I could go on for hours telling you about his exploits in Kuwait, but I’d feel embarrassed for him. I know that Major D would say that he wasn’t really brave; it was just that he was completely devoted to his military career.
Probably of all the company commanders at RMA Sandhurst, Major D. has reached the state we all strive after. Major D. is at the point we’re heading for!

It’s the point I wanted to reach ever since the day I entered the gates of RMA Sandhurst. He has the right answer for any question he’s asked. His knowledge of military affairs is impressive. He’s a truly accomplished soldier. When you talk about him the word “duty” loses any pomposity. You feel you would really love to do your duty as Major D. does!
When I think of him, I remember all my small sacrifices, delays, hesitations, negligence, or laziness. This is not a sign of virtue, but as a sign of honest acknowledgement of my faults. I’d like to be very much like him! A beautiful tree has deep roots. Major D’s character is like that beautiful tree.

He lives and breathes military life. Discipline and competence come to him in such a natural way. They jokingly say about him that “even in his sleep he’s standing
to attention”. He’s imbued with discipline like a practicing believer is imbued with his creed.

In the time spent with him, I realized that he constantly strives for a certain state that has to be preserved and which is its own rationale. This is the source of the principles he has instilled in generations of cadets that go through the Academy! His credo is: build and build things that last! He’s the one who really does that and he really has a lot to give.

He has a real connection with all the cadets he trains. That’s why I love Major D., although I never feel the need to tell him so. I know that once we are officers, all the former cadets of the Alamein Company will try to follow Major D.’s example. We’ll be cut from the same cloth. We all hope one day to become like him. I hope I’ll be the same as Major D. I’ll have the same attitude to my country.

I’ve finally learned the secret of the mutual respect for one another held by all those who wear the military uniform. We’re part of the same sacrifice in war. I understand why Major D. does his duty without boasting. Major D. is like me, a part of this people. They respect him, and he, by virtue of everything he does, deserves their respect.

Now that I’ve understood this, I’ve also made my decision. I’ll go overseas and I’ll be one of those who engage in the thick of the fight. My deeds will make people proud of me. I won’t be looking for any reward! I’ll be one of those young men, dressed in uniform, and serving their country”

When a young man enters the gate of the Sandhurst Academy he is just a teenager, and after a long series of experiences he becomes a man. Then, after a long waiting, it comes the Graduation Day. Here, in Sandhurst this means a special military ceremony named: ”Passing Out”.

Suddenly, all the cadets become happy. They’ll say goodbye to classes and to their studies, to the books that have guided their steps in the miraculous realms of knowledge. They’ll part with the youthful enthusiasm for all interesting activities and their great dreams. They’re graduates and they’re officers of the British Royal Army!

Graduates!

They’re like enthusiastic sailors on the vast ocean of knowledge and achievement. Quite soon they’ll weigh anchor for the first time after 44 weeks of sailing. It won’t be too long before they reach the destiny of their dreams. It’s the end of an important period in their development. The sailor in the lookout has shouted “Land ahoy!”

His shout is full of his joy at the accomplishment of his mission as a sailor but also his regret at parting with the salty tang of the sea air. But in the end their objective is to conquer that land in the distance.

Now, on graduation, they remember many of the moments they’ve live through here – for instance, the entry exam, which wasn’t easy and the first day as a cadet. Then there was their first parade, their first class and their first hours of training. Later came their first day handling a weapon and the first prize as cadets in a sport competitions. One whole year has passed in the Academy. They entered as ordinary civilians and now they leave as commissioned officers, proud of the military uniform.

For a member of British Royal Family, the military career seems a simple choice, but it hides a certain responsibility towards his own sense of identity. Harry could have chosen a smoother and more comfortable path for his training. But he was attracted from the beginning by the prospect of having a clear purpose in life, even if it was one that was hard to achieve. At first, because of his rebellious spirit, he only had a blurred image of how things could be in the Army, but later on, he began to see things very clearly.

If someone wants to give a definition to the cadet at RMA Sandhurst, he has to include hundreds of years of tradition and thousands of characters of all varieties converted to the simple reality of military life. It involves thousands of hours of hard work, of study and training. It’s a long road crowned by the satisfaction of success. For the cadets here today in the parade, the Academy means history. It’s so great to know that a part of your personal history is now part of the history of Sandhurst Academy.

On the event of “Passing Out”, they’re getting ready for the last exercise here: the Sovereign’s Parade. Then they’ll make for the big exit gate and will step into the future. But they’re still dependent on the past! Their actions will follow them!

Prince Harry was full of emotion at first. Here, in this Military Academy he learned to feel great pride during participation in the military parades. That was his last participation in such a parade, being a royal cadet. Then he had a shadow of sadness in his eyes. Even he experienced the happiness of being a Graduate, I imagine him saying: “So, fare-well Sandhurst! I’ll come back to you as to my first and best love!”